The Burnside View development has already been granted planning permission by Stirling Council and Persimmon has now completed the purchase of the site that will allow them to begin work in September.

The plans include a variety of energy-efficient new homes, ranging from two to five bedrooms, which will come with options for solar panels and electric car charging points to support new homeowners to cut carbon and lower household bills. The 29 housing association homes will help to reduce Stirling Council’s housing waiting list, with more than 6,000 local people reportedly in housing need.

Burnside View will also feature a large area of open space, which will include a play area, as well as active travel routes throughout the site and the surrounding area. As part of the development, Persimmon will invest over £1.3 million into the local community. This will include more than £1m to support the local primary and secondary schools, with additional contributions going towards healthcare and transport.

The development is expected to create more than 100 local construction jobs each year, with a further 82 in services and the local supply chain.

Neil Parry, Persimmon East Scotland managing director, said: “We’re delighted to have completed the purchase of the first phase of the Cushenquarter Farm site and we’re looking forward to beginning work in the near future.

“Burnside View will deliver much needed affordable, energy-efficient homes for local people. With the average price of our homes 20% below the market average in Scotland, we’re proud to be creating more opportunities for local families to own their own home.”

Positive half-year for Persimmon

The acquisition comes as Persimmon lifted its forecasts for the year amid improving market optimism and consumer confidence.

Unveiling its half-year results for the six months ended June 30, Persimmon pointed to “improved sales rates and robust average selling prices, despite ongoing affordability challenges” as it revealed its current private forward order book is up 28% year on year to £1.12 billion.

The York-based company, which is building at locations across Scotland from Galashiels in the Borders to Carnoustie in Angus, said half-year revenue rose 10.9% to £1.3bn, driven by 4,445 new home completions, up 5%, including a 14% increase in private completions to 3,742 homes with the averaging selling price £263,288, up from £256,445 a year ago.

Underlying operating profit was broadly flat at £152 million, reflecting the slightly lower margins on prior orders due to build-cost inflation and increased use of incentives, while pre-tax profit fell by 3% to £146.3m, although this was ahead of the expected £129m. Persimmon also noted it was on track for completions of about 10,500 for the full year, at the top end of previous guidance.

Dean Finch, group chief executive, said: “Persimmon is a growing company with growing opportunities. The first half of the year has been strong with improved sales rates and robust average selling prices, despite ongoing affordability challenges.

“Strengthening consumer sentiment, improving macroeconomic conditions and the government’s welcome and ambitious planning reforms that demand more of the high-quality, affordable homes that are Persimmon’s core strength are all supportive of our ambition to grow this year and in the future.”